The question was raised as to whether children were at the Nevada Insane Asylum. This question was answered with information found by Arline Laferry, docent, Nevada Historical Society.
Nevada State Journal, Sunday Feb. 8, 1958, pages four and five. Article by Frank Johnson. Scientific care and kindness at Nevada's state hospital make up for shortages.
Page 4. "The hospital's 14 children are for the most part, kept in a small ward with a number of older women who have strong motherly instincts. Dr. Tillim admits this sounds disheartening but, in practice it works splendidly. Many of the children are physicially deformed and all are hard to take care of. The women, themselves feebleminded or otherside unbalanced, can recognize the youngsters only as children and not as deficients, therefore giving them love and care.
A yard adjoins the children's ward for fair weather play. In bad weather the youngsters are allowed to play in an airy but bare day room. A doll and a few small toys seemed to be the extent of the playthings available to the small inmates, all of whom are classified as non-educatable. They range in ages between four and 17. Children over 12 are generally kept in wards with members of their own sex."
On page four are photos of the old fashioned kitchen, and a hairdressers' room. Page five has a photo of the useless marble hydrotherapy unit, not useable due to low water pressure, a photo of the beds in a ward, and a photo of the sub-surface passage that runs under the State Hospital's employees' quarters used for food delivery.
(See photos in Life in the Asylum/Photos section)
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